Welcome to the world of hair! Did you know that each strand of human hair is strong enough to hold the weight of a small apple? That’s right, a single hair can support about 3.5 ounces. With an average of 100,000 to 150,000 hairs on a person’s head, our hair could theoretically hold up to 16 tons! However, it only takes a tiny bit of force to pull a hair out.
People have been styling their hair for thousands of years. Ancient cave paintings show people using mud, clay, feathers, and bones to decorate their hair. Today, we wash our hair to remove oils, but did you know that these oils can be useful? In 2006, hair clippings were used to clean up an oil spill in the Philippines. Hair is also used in gardening to keep soil moist and prevent weeds.
Terelynn Russell from Illinois holds records for her incredibly long ponytail, which is 6 feet long! It takes her an hour to blow dry her hair, and sometimes she even trips over it. Before modern blow dryers, people used vacuum cleaner attachments to dry their hair.
There’s a math concept called the Hairy Ball Theorem, which says that if you try to comb a hairy ball flat, you’ll always end up with at least one cowlick. This idea is also used to explain why cows have cowlicks.
In Colombia, there’s a barbershop where bald men can have their heads licked by a cow, although cow saliva doesn’t help with hair growth. In the 1970s, Frank Smith patented a comb-over technique to hide baldness, but it didn’t make him rich.
Dandruff affects about half of the world’s population, especially during puberty. People often notice it more in winter, but it can happen any time of the year. Dandruff can also appear in eyebrows and facial hair. Baseball player Rollie Fingers famously refused to shave his mustache for a team.
Every year in Kyoto, there’s a Comb Festival where people celebrate 1,300 years of hairstyles. The mullet, a popular hairstyle, dates back to ancient times and is mentioned in Homer’s “Iliad.” The beehive hairstyle was invented in 1960 as a futuristic look.
Throughout history, people have tried many strange remedies for baldness. Ancient Egyptians used porcupine hairs, while the Irish and Brits tried rubbing onions on their heads. None of these methods work, but they make for interesting stories.
In Vanuatu, people believed that when a man’s hair touched the ground, it fertilized the soil. This belief led to land diving, which inspired modern bungee jumping. If you ever try bungee jumping, remember that wet hair can stretch up to 30% longer!
The term “Big Wigs” comes from Colonial America, where wigmakers would bake wool wigs to make them fluffy. Human hair contains 14 elements, including a tiny amount of gold.
Thanks for exploring these amazing hair facts! Remember, hair is not just something on our heads; it’s a fascinating part of our history and culture. Keep learning and stay awesome!
Try this at home: Take a single strand of your hair and see how much weight it can hold before breaking. Use small objects like paper clips or rubber bands. Record your results and compare them with your classmates to see whose hair is the strongest!
Choose a historical period and research the popular hairstyles of that time. Create a poster or digital presentation showcasing the styles, materials used, and any cultural significance. Share your findings with the class.
Explore the Hairy Ball Theorem by using a small ball and some yarn. Try to comb the yarn flat around the ball and observe the cowlicks that form. Discuss with your classmates how this relates to real-life cowlicks and other natural patterns.
Use your creativity to design a new hairstyle or hair accessory inspired by the facts you learned. Draw your design or use craft materials to create a model. Present your creation to the class and explain your inspiration.
Research a hair myth or belief from the article, such as using onions for baldness. Investigate the science behind it and present your findings. Discuss why people might have believed in these myths and what modern science says about them.
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:
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Hi, I’m John Green. Welcome to my salon. This is Mental Floss on YouTube, and did you know that every strand of human hair is strong enough to hold 3.5 ounces? That’s about the weight of a small apple. With the average human head housing between 100,000 and 150,000 hairs, that means hair can potentially support upwards of 16 tons! However, it only takes a single ounce of force to pluck a hair from your scalp.
That’s just the first of many interesting facts I’m going to share with you today, in this video brought to you by our friends at Head & Shoulders. People have been styling their hair for as long as there have been people. Cave paintings from prehistoric times show individuals with mud, clay, feathers, and bones in their hair for decoration.
Part of the reason we wash our hair regularly is because oils collect on its surface, but that can actually be beneficial. For example, in 2006, tons of donated hair clippings were used to soak up oil after a spill in the Philippines. Hair is also useful in gardening; since 2008, organic gardeners have been using woven mats of human hair in flower beds to keep soil moist and fend off weeds.
Terelynn Russell from Morris, Illinois holds numerous State Fair records for the longest ponytail. Her 6-foot-long hair takes her an hour to blow dry, and she occasionally trips over it when she walks. In the early 1900s, before handheld blow dryers were invented, people used attachments on their vacuum cleaners as hair dryers.
There’s a math theorem known as the Hairy Ball Theorem, proposed in the 1800s by mathematician Henri Poincaré. It shows that if you take a spherical ball covered in hair and try to comb it flat, it will always result in at least one cowlick. This theorem is also used to support the idea that every cow has at least one cowlick.
Speaking of cows, there’s a barbershop in Colombia where balding men can have their heads licked by a cow. Unfortunately, cow saliva doesn’t have any hair-preserving properties, but urban legends are strong.
In the 1970s, Florida resident Frank Smith patented his comb-over under the title “Method for Concealing Partial Baldness.” His extreme variant required growing a ring of hair around the head and sweeping it over in three sections. Unfortunately, his patented comb-over never brought him the riches he hoped for.
In 2007, the Pakistani army commissioned a report on dandruff among soldiers because the flakes and itchiness were a source of embarrassment. In truth, half of people around the world suffer from dandruff, and up to 60% do during puberty. People tend to notice dandruff more in winter, with searches for dandruff cures increasing by 40% during that time, but dandruff is not a seasonal issue; it occurs all year long.
Dandruff can also affect your eyebrows and facial hair, including mustaches. In 1986, baseball player Rollie Fingers, known for his famous mustache, refused to join the Cincinnati Reds because they wanted him to shave it off.
There’s a Comb Festival held in Kyoto every year, starting with some hair combing at a shrine, followed by a parade of women showcasing 1,300 years of hairstyles. The mullet is known by many names, like the Camaro Cut and the Tennessee Tophat, but it’s not an American invention; it dates back to the Iliad, where Homer describes a warrior tribe with a similar hairstyle.
The beehive hairdo was invented in 1960 by Margaret Vinci Heldt, who was asked by Modern Beauty Salon magazine to create a futuristic hairstyle for the new decade. To keep their hair in place, synchronized swimmers use gelatin packets instead of hairspray. Many blonde swimmers even add coffee to the gelatin mix.
Various cultures have had unique hair care beliefs. For instance, Ancient Egyptians thought boiling porcupine hairs and applying them to the head for four days would cure baldness. Ancient Irish and Brits believed rubbing a raw onion on the head could also help with baldness, while Ancient Indians thought doing a headstand would promote hair growth.
None of these remedies actually work, but they certainly make for interesting stories. Islanders from the Pacific nation of Vanuatu believed that when a man’s hair brushed against the ground, it fertilized the soil. This belief led to land diving, where men jumped off 75-foot wooden towers with elastic vines around their ankles, inspiring the later invention of bungee jumping.
If you’re trying to brush your head against the ground while bungee jumping, it’s best to wet your hair first, as healthy hair can increase in length by as much as 30% when damp and stretched.
According to the Encyclopedia of Hair, the term “Big Wigs” comes from Colonial America, where wigmakers cleaned wool wigs by baking them in hollowed-out loaves of bread, causing the fibers to swell and create extra volume.
Finally, I return to my salon to tell you that human hair contains 14 elements, with gold being the most special of them all. Thanks for watching Mental Floss here on YouTube, made possible by our sponsors, Head & Shoulders. And as we say in my hometown, don’t forget to be awesome!
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This version removes any informal or potentially inappropriate language while maintaining the informative content.
Hair – A filamentous biomaterial that grows from follicles found in the dermis, often studied in biology for its structure and function. – Scientists study the structure of hair to understand how it protects the skin and regulates body temperature.
Theorem – A statement or proposition that can be proven based on previously established statements or principles in mathematics. – The Pythagorean theorem helps us calculate the length of the sides of a right triangle.
Math – The abstract science of number, quantity, and space, used in various fields to solve problems and understand patterns. – Math is essential for understanding scientific data and making accurate predictions.
Force – A push or pull upon an object resulting from the object’s interaction with another object, often measured in newtons. – In physics, we calculate the force needed to move an object using the formula F = ma, where F is force, m is mass, and a is acceleration.
Weight – The force exerted on an object due to the acceleration of gravity, calculated as the product of mass and gravitational acceleration. – An astronaut’s weight on the Moon is less than on Earth because the gravitational pull is weaker.
Oils – Hydrophobic substances that are liquid at room temperature, often studied in chemistry for their properties and uses. – In chemistry class, we learned how oils can be used to create biodiesel as an alternative energy source.
Soil – The upper layer of earth in which plants grow, composed of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms. – Soil quality is crucial for agriculture, as it affects plant growth and crop yield.
Dandruff – Flakes of dead skin that are shed from the scalp, sometimes studied in biology to understand skin health. – Researchers are studying dandruff to find better treatments for maintaining a healthy scalp.
Styles – Distinctive manners of expression or presentation, often used in science to describe different methods or approaches. – Scientists use different styles of data visualization to effectively communicate their findings.
History – The study of past events, particularly in human affairs, which can include the development of scientific theories and discoveries. – The history of mathematics shows how ancient civilizations contributed to modern mathematical concepts.
